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Imperial Savagery - S/T EP

I first became aware of this group a few days ago when the second drummer from Absu gave me a copy of this EP. Apparently they have been around since 2013, and I’m kicking myself for not familiarizing myself with them earlier. Anyone who can fill in for Proscriptor obviously has some serious skill so I decided to give this recording a few spins.

The brutal album art gave me a good idea of what I was getting myself into, but once the music started my brains were splattered to the wall from the sheer brutality coming out of my speakers. The drums, played by Garrett Scanlan, are a nonstop assault, yet still creative. Nobody wants to hear blasts for 10 minutes straight (well… maybe some people do), but Garrett keeps everything fresh and intriguing while still keeping his kit sounding like a machine gun out of hell. The vocals are pretty close to perfect for this style of death metal, and are intelligible while still being harsh, low, and pitiless. The guitar riffs, courtesy of Tom Flanagan, somehow combine old school death metal, black metal, and occasionally some thrashier passages. There is no wasted space, no filler riffs, and everything has a purpose. Obviously this band is on a mission. The bass basically follows the guitar to beef up the sound, and is locked in with the drums completely. There are a good amount of chugs, but no “slams” or “breakdowns” because this is straight up fucking metal.

Do you ever miss some of the nastiness and ugliness that used to abound in death metal? The filth that comprised Incantation, early Autopsy, and Altars of Madness-era Morbid abounds on this EP. This recording is only 10 minutes long, yet I feel like I got hit by a bus after every listen. If you like your death metal ugly, yet technical enough to keep your head banging constantly, I highly recommend checking out this band. I’ve only reviewed the 3-song EP here, but you can find their 10-song full-length on their bandcamp or iTunes. Go buy it and break your neck headbanging.